Build your own game

Posted on by forstm

The weather has been lovely this week.  The temperatures are moderate and the rain is holding back.  Our outdoor classrooms are in use constantly.  In between treks in the woods and stories on the rock, we break down for a bit of good-old-fashioned, shake-it-out play.

While looking for a soccer ball the other day, two boys happened upon a small ball and a tube we set out for a ramp/tunnel.  We (being closed-minded, non-imaginative, grown-ups) suggested that they could throw the ball and try to catch it.  They had other plans.

[wpvideo TxGXlg2h]

Not sure what learning you are seeing? Try these on:

  • Creative Use of Materials
  • Motor Planning
  • Arm/Hand/Implement Coordination
  • Problem Solving
  • Abstract Thought
  • Representational Play
  • Conflict Management
  • Patience
  • Self-Regulation
  • Mentoring Other Students
  • The Art of Compromise

Nano Experiments

Posted on by forstm

Thanks to our visiting robots, one of the students was inspired to bring his Hexbug Nano as well.  If you’ve never encountered one of these little things, you’re in for a jittery surprise.  They move around via vibration and are great for following paths and mazes set out by our wee inventors.

Our pile of recycled items, collected for robot designs, took on new life as tracks for robot motion.  Three long cardboard tubes were nested together with varying success.  Two of the tubes were narrow, the size of a paper towel tube, while one was noticeably greater in girth.  The first  attempts placed the smaller tubes on either end of the larger.  This led to the Nano getting stuck at the entrance of the third tube where it was slightly higher.  After much adjusting, some squishing, and some good old-fashioned teamwork, the children discovered a way to make the tube sizes more even.  They simply unraveled the end of one of the smaller tubes, creating a larger opening that could still slide into the wider tube.

Where did it go?